Rise of the Dinosaurs

Rise of the Dinosaurs

In this activity children will learn about the formation of coal and that there are different types of coal.

Description

The fragmentation of tropical rainforests around 300 million years ago helped pave the way for the rise of the dinosaurs, a new study suggests. In the Carboniferous period, 360-286 million years ago, North America and Europe lay at the equator and were covered by steamy rainforest. Global warming is thought to have brought about the collapse of these tropical habitats, triggering an evolutionary burst among reptiles.

Children will learn about the formation of coal and that there are different types of coal. They will look at pictures of the different coals and use observation to determine some of the characteristics of those coals. Some children will compare those with rocks found in their local environment.

Learning Objective:

- that rocks are naturally occurring

Children will learn:

- some vocabulary used to describe characteristics of materials

- to create a key

Primary upd8

Acknowledgements

These resources were initially developed in partnership with the Centre for Science Education, Sheffield Hallam University.